DE102021123908A1 - Arrangement and method for phase assignment - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to an arrangement for phase assignment, ie for assigning the phase conductors of an electrical installation connected to a multiphase supply voltage to the individual phases of the supply voltage, and a method for phase assignment using such an arrangement. The arrangement comprises a transmitter device with transmitter connection means, reference detection means, reference signal generation and transmission means, and a receiver device with receiver connection means, phase comparison detection means, comparison means and display means.

Description

The present invention relates to an arrangement for phase assignment, ie for assigning the phase conductors of an electrical installation connected to a multiphase supply voltage to the individual phases of the supply voltage, and a method for phase assignment using such an arrangement.

The electrical installation of a building, such as a residential building or a workshop, usually includes a number of lines that run from a central connection point of an external power grid to individual connection points, for example in the form of sockets, switches or directly connected consumers. The lines leading from the external connection point to the internal connection points usually include a neutral conductor, a protective conductor and one or more phase conductors, also called external conductors. Here, the neutral conductors (of the lines) of the electrical installation are connected to an external neutral conductor at the connection point, and the outer conductors are each connected to one of the phases leading from the external power grid to the connection point. The supply voltage brought in from the external mains supply usually comprises three phases which are offset from one another by a phase angle of 120°.

Since the individual phases of the supply voltage must not be loaded unequally, when setting up the electrical installation, care must be taken to ensure that the internal connection points are distributed as evenly as possible to the phases of the external supply voltage in terms of power. With this in mind, the electrician divides the internal connection points between the various phases. Since the lines to the individual internal connection points are usually combined in cables and these are in turn laid under plaster or at least in cable ducts, it is difficult to assign the connection points to the phases afterwards, unless it was documented during installation, which often does not happen to determine.

However, especially when the installations are subsequently changed or a new consumer is to be connected, especially one with high power consumption, it is often important to know which of the phases of the supply voltage would be loaded as a result. In this case, the problem arises of determining the assignment made when creating the electrical installation. In the case of a single internal connection point, such as a single socket or a single directly connected consumer, this may still be possible with a reasonable amount of time if in doubt. However, a considerable amount of time is required if the said assignment for the complete electrical installation has to be determined later. In the case of a medium-sized single-family house, an electrician can be occupied with this for several hours.

Devices and methods are known in the prior art, with which the phase assignment of an electrical installation can be made easier or automated. For example, the US patent US 9,568,522B2 proposes a procedure in which consumption data determined by means of power meters inserted at various points in the electrical installation are brought together and evaluated centrally. In this case, a correlation is calculated between the power curves measured by the various measuring devices and the measuring devices are then assigned to the individual phases on the basis of the calculated correlation, with two measuring devices then being assigned to the same phase if the correlation between them exceeds a certain value.
The method presented there is based on the fact that loads caused by consumers and their changes over time only affect the phase or phases to which the respective consumer is attached. A voltage drop in this phase caused by an increased power consumption of a consumer in one phase is also transmitted to all other consumers connected to this phase, which can be detected accordingly by the measuring devices connected upstream or downstream of the other consumers.
The disadvantage of this method is that it assumes the presence of power meters that can share their data with a central evaluation point, for example by wireless transmission. In addition, the described method of assignment via correlations in the temporal progression of the power consumption of individual consumers is less reliable than other methods.

Another method and a device for phase assignment via a multi-phase power supply network is disclosed in the published application DE196 21 543 A1 presented. There, an arrangement of a load modification module and a load control module is proposed, with the load modification module being connected to a phase to be determined and this then placing an additional electrical load on the phase. The load control module is connected to all phases of the multiphase network and can register which of the phases are affected by the additional load caused by the load modification module. The result of this phase assignment is displayed using a display unit of the load control module.
The downside here is that's an extra burden is connected to a phase line to be tested, which can entail additional energy consumption and also possible undesired emission of radio radiation by switching the load on and off. When connecting the additional load, particular care must be taken to ensure that the phase connected to the phase line to be tested is not subjected to an excessive load. In a situation in which the assignment of the individual phase conductors to the phases of the supply voltage is initially not known, there is always the risk of the phase line to be tested being overloaded.

In the disclosure document DE 10 2011 087 280 A1 a system of networked household appliances is presented, each of which has a common time base and a detection device for a time measuring device for determining a zero crossing of the voltage of a phase to which the appliance is connected. In response to an interrupt signal from one of the home appliances or a central controller, all of the networked home appliances start a time measurement and determine the times of the zero crossings of the phase to which they are connected. The detection device of each of the household appliances also has a phase allocator, which uses the measured times of the respective household appliance and the measurement times of the other household appliances received via the data network to allocate which of the phases the respective household appliance is connected to.

The result is then shown on a display of the respective household appliance.
The disadvantage of this system is that all home appliances require an internal clock and a common time base in order to be able to determine the absolute times of the zero crossings of their respective phase. In order to ensure a reliable result, these internal clocks must be synchronized in a comparatively complex manner using a network synchronization algorithm, for example the Network Time Protocol (NTP) or the Precision Time Protocol (PTP) is proposed. Furthermore, an allocator is required in order to enable an allocation to one of the phases from the comparison of one of the measurement results with the times measured by other household appliances. As a result, the recognition device becomes more complicated and complex.
Finally, the recognition device is integrated into a household appliance, which also increases complexity and space requirements and can limit portability.

Against this background, the object of the present invention is to enable simple and rapid phase assignment using simple and compact devices.

This object is achieved by an arrangement according to claim 1 and a method according to claim 13.

The arrangement here comprises a transmitter device and at least one receiver device, the transmitter device being able to be electrically connected to at least one phase conductor and one neutral conductor of the electrical installation via transmitter connection means, with the points in time being determined after the connection of the reference detection means at which the voltage of a reference phase of a connected phase conductors reach one or more predetermined phase angles, reference signal generation means, which generate a reference signal encoding the identified reference instants, and reference signal transmission means in order to send this reference signal to the receiver device or devices.

The receiver device in turn comprises receiver connection means for connection to one of the phase conductors and a neutral conductor of the electrical installation, the phase carried by the connected phase conductor being referred to as the receiver phase, via reference signal receiving means which can receive the reference signal transmitted by the transmitter, and phase comparison detection means which enable the receiver device to determine the comparison times at which the receiver phase reaches the predetermined phase angle or angles. Furthermore, the receiver device comprises comparison means, which are able to determine a time offset and/or a difference angle from the determined comparison times and the reference times taken from the reference signal, as well as display means, by means of which this time offset and/or difference angle can be displayed to a user at least approximately , whereby this can make an assignment of the phase conductor connected to the receiving device to one of the phases of the supply voltage.

In this case, the reference and the comparison times are determined by the transmitter or receiver relative to an easy-to-determine and similar reference point in the voltage profile of a phase, for example and preferably the rising zero crossing of the respective voltage.

The predetermined phase angles can be permanently predetermined in the transmitter as well as in the receiver. Alternatively, they can also be adjustable or programmable by the user.

The fact that the transmitting and receiving device recognizes that a certain phase angle has been reached does not mean that they actually explicitly measure or calculate the angle as a numerical value, whether in degrees or rad or another angle unit. Rather, it should be understood here as any detection of a specific voltage value which can be assigned to a specific phase angle within the framework of a sinusoidal voltage. For example, in some embodiments of the invention, the detection means of the transmitter and receiver device can each be set up to detect the zero crossings and/or the extreme values of the voltage present in each case. In this case, the reference and/or comparison points in time can be recorded directly by time measurement, without an explicit phase angle determination taking place. In some embodiments, neither an explicit time nor an angle measurement takes place, but simply a signal transformation of the reference phase voltage and/or comparison phase voltage or phase-separated but true-to-phase images thereof.

In some embodiments, the reference signal can be generated by using an internal timer to record the instants of the zero crossings for each period and then generating a reference signal which encodes these instants. This can be a data signal which, preferably for each period of the voltage applied to the transmitting device, transmits the measured times to the receiving device as binary numerical values. Alternatively, the reference signal can be a square-wave signal in which the rising and falling edges correspond to the instants of the zero crossings, or generally to the instants at which the predetermined phase angles are reached.

A particularly simple, simple and effective method for generating a reference signal results from using a phase-separated image of the phase voltage as the input signal of an amplifier with a high gain, whose output voltage is limited to a maximum value, for example naturally by a DC supply voltage. Such a circuit transforms a sinusoidal (input) voltage into a square-wave voltage. The negative or the positive (negative) half-wave can be cut off in this case if the reference signal is not to include any positive (negative) voltage values. This transformation of the sinusoidal reference phase voltage image into a square-wave signal naturally encodes the rising (falling) zero crossing of the reference phase voltage in its rising (falling) edge.

In contrast to the prior art, no absolute time measurement is carried out within the scope of the present invention and thus a complex synchronization of internal clocks, as is the case with the system of FIG DE 10 2011 087 280 A1 is necessary.

The reference signal, in particular a square-wave signal, is then forwarded either in analog or digitized form to the receiver device, where the reference times encoded therein are compared with the comparison times recognized there in order to determine a time offset or a difference angle.

One possibility for this is that the receiver device, in the same way as the transmitter device, generates a square-wave voltage from the applied receiver phase voltage or a potential-separated image thereof, which corresponds in frequency and amplitude to the received reference signal. The two signals can then be subtracted from each other, resulting in a square-wave signal that encodes the time difference sought, which can then be extracted from it. If necessary, the phase angle can be calculated from this by forming a ratio with the period T and multiplying it by 360°.

In the embodiments with an explicit transmission of the reference times as binary numerical values, the receiving device also determines the comparison times in binary form, for example by means of an internal stopwatch. This is preferably done anew for each period. A specific point in time of a period of the transmitting device is selected as the starting point, for example the rising zero crossing. The timing of this zero crossing must be communicated to the transmitting device in analog form. When using a digital or digitized reference signal, this requires the transmission of a secondary start signal, for example a signal which has a voltage peak for a narrowly limited time, for example in the form of a rectangle, at each start time, as the beginning of each period. Alternatively, a square-wave signal can also be transmitted, which always alternately has a period with a positive and a period with a negative or vanishing voltage.

In the embodiments of the invention that use an analog reference signal, the start signal and the reference signal can advantageously be combined into a single signal, which then encodes both the information about the beginning of each period of the reference phase and the times at which a specific phase angle of the reference phase is reached.

A simple embodiment of the display means of the receiver, which is already sufficient for unambiguous assignment at least when the supply voltage comprises no more than three phases, consists in the use of three light sources, particularly preferably LEDs, with each of the light sources having a specific (minimal) time offset or difference angle is assigned. One of the light sources is assigned a time offset or difference angle of (approximately) zero, i.e. it only lights up if the receiver device, when comparing the difference times with the comparison times, determines that there is a time offset or difference angle that, within the measurement accuracy, and /or a predetermined threshold, based for example on the measurement accuracy, corresponds to a zero measurement or lies within a first value range containing zero. A second of the three light sources lights up when a time offset or a phase angle is measured that is within the measurement accuracy or within a predetermined threshold, based for example on the measurement accuracy, is greater than zero or is above a predetermined first threshold or within a second, the Angle 120 ° containing value range, and accordingly the third light source if a time offset or the measured phase difference angle within one of the measurement accuracy or a threshold based thereon is less than zero or greater than a predetermined second threshold, which is approximately twice the first threshold, or is within a third value range containing the angle -120° or 240°. In this case, all the light sources can be of the same color or, preferably, allow the user to identify them more easily through different colors.

This simple means of display could also be extended to more than three phases by forming further categories and specifying further thresholds. As a result, there is no need for an allocation means, such as the recognition device
DE 10 2011 087 280 A1 needed to make the assignment to one of the phases of the supply voltage.
Alternatively or additionally, the time offset or the differential angle can also be displayed as a numerical value.

The devices used in the arrangement according to the invention in the form of the transmitter device and the receiver device therefore do without internal clocks and their complex synchronization and also do without dedicated allocation means.
It is to the credit of the present invention to have recognized that the determination of the absolute point in time for the presence of a specific reference phase angle, for example the zero crossing (corresponding to a phase angle of 0° or 180°) is not necessary in order to assign the phase. For this it is sufficient that the transmitter selects one of the phases to which it is connected as the reference phase and transmits the reference times recognized in the voltage of the reference phase in coded form by means of a reference signal to the receiver.

In this case, the reference signal can be an analog signal, for example a square-wave signal, or it is present in digitized form. Here, the error caused by the transmission time from the transmitter to the receiver due to the finite signal propagation speed is in the range of about 100 nanoseconds or less in the case of a medium-sized house (diameter about 30 m or less), and remains even when measuring electrical installations in large ones Factory halls (diameter 300 m) in the range of only one microsecond. The error caused in this way would be smaller by at least one order of magnitude than the measuring accuracy of the time measuring means used by the phase or difference or phase comparison detection means of the transmitter or receiver, for which an accuracy of 0.01 to one millisecond is suggested. The error is even smaller considering that the finite signal propagation affects not only the reference signal but also the phase voltages propagating in the conductors of the electrical installation. If the transmitter is connected near the connection point of the external supply voltage, an error in the phase angle measurement only results from the difference in the propagation speed of electromagnetic waves in a vacuum and in a conductor.

The arrangement according to the invention and the method using it enable a quick and simple determination of the phase assignment in an electrical installation, which can also be carried out by a single person within a short time. Here, the disadvantages of the methods known from the prior art are avoided. In contrast to the procedure in the DE19621543A1 is proposed, no additional loading and unloading of any of the phases of the supply voltage is necessary. This does not result in additional energy consumption or unwanted interference signals. A complex installation of a number of networked current meters, as shown in the US9,568,522B2 is presented, can also be avoided by the simple arrangement according to the invention, in the simplest case, a transmitter and a receiver. The same applies to the phase assignment, which in the DE 10 2011 087 280 A1 is presented. According to the teaching there, each individual consumer device connected to the electrical installation should have their own phase assignment unit. In contrast, when using the present invention, there is a clear simplification in terms of costs. This applies firstly when comparing the arrangement according to the invention with the system there, but also when comparing the individual devices with one another, i.e. the transmitter or receiver with one of the household appliances proposed there, supplemented by a recognition device which has an internal clock reduced complexity achieved.

Further advantageous developments of the present invention, which can be realized individually or in combination with one another, provided they are not obviously mutually exclusive, can be found in the dependent claims and should be presented individually below.

The reference signal is preferably an analogue or digitized square-wave signal with a frequency which corresponds to the mains frequency of the supply voltage. The edges of the square-wave signal correspond to the recognized reference times, i.e. at the point in time within a period of the voltage exactly at the recognized reference times, a rising or falling edge of the reference signal is generated. This means that the first known reference time corresponds, for example, to the first rising edge of the square-wave signal, the second recognized reference time is assigned to the first falling edge, the second rising edge corresponds to the third reference time, etc.

In some embodiments, 0°, 180° or 0° and 180° are selected as the predetermined phase angle, the reaching of which within a period of the supply voltage or a phase thereof marks a reference point in time. These values correspond to the first (0°) and the second (180°) of the zero crossings of the voltage of a phase of the supply voltage, which is assumed to be sinusoidal. In other embodiments, 90° and/or 270° are used as predetermined phase angles. With a sinusoidal supply voltage, this corresponds to the times at which the voltage reaches an extreme value. In further preferred embodiments, the respective phase is monitored for reaching four reference phase angles, namely particularly preferably 0°, 90°, 180° and 270° corresponding to the zero crossings and the two extreme values of the phase voltage.

In principle, it would be sufficient to monitor only a single phase angle and register the point in time at which this is reached as a reference point in time. However, the fact that a phase is monitored for reaching two or more phase angles enables a higher degree of certainty when differentiating the different phases from one another. This applies in any case to the extent that the time measurement accuracy of the time measurement device used and the identification accuracy of the phase angle detection device used by the phase reference detection device of the transmitter or receiver still allow resolution of the respective phase angle.
In addition, the technical implementation of phase angle detection can also be simpler in the case of multiple phase angles, for example if this is done by detecting the zero crossings or the extreme values. This naturally results in two points in time within a period corresponding to 0 and 180° (zero crossings) or 90° and 270° (extreme values).

In a preferred embodiment, the transmitting device uses its reference detection means to detect the zero crossings of the reference phase voltage and forwards this using the reference signal to the receiving device, which then measures the time interval between the zero crossings of the receiver phase voltage. With a three-phase supply voltage with a frequency of 50 Hz, there are three possibilities: the zero crossings of the receiver phase voltage can occur 0, 3.2 or 6.6 ms after those of the reference phase. The receiver device then displays these measured time offset values to the user by means of its display means, at least in a simplified form, for example by assigning a lamp to each value or value range centered around the above values with a width based on the measurement accuracy, with the lamps particularly preferably being LEDs and different colors such as red, green and yellow or blue.

In embodiments of the present invention, in which time measuring means are used to determine the reference and/or comparison times, these preferably have a temporal measurement accuracy of between 0.01 and 1 millisecond, preferably between 0.05 and 0.1 millisecond.

In addition, in preferred embodiments, the detection means of the transmitter and/or receiver device do not work with the actual phase voltage of the respectively connected phase conductor, but rather they receive a potential-separated image of the same, in particular one with a reduced amplitude. This ensures galvanic isolation and thus increased security against overloading of the phase detection means. In the case of an image with a sufficiently reduced amplitude, low-voltage switching elements can also be used in the electronics of the detection means.

It is preferred by the present invention that the connection means for connecting the transmitter and/or receiver device to the one or more phases (the latter only in the case of the transmitter device) and a neutral conductor takes place by means of a plug, which is connected in a corresponding manner with phases and neutral conductors and if necessary, protective conductor with wired socket is plugged in. This plug can be a CEE7/4, 7/5, 7/7 or a 7/16 (Euro plug) or, in the case of the transmitter, also a three-phase CE power plug.

The reference signal transmission means of the transmitter device of the arrangement according to the invention is preferably a wireless transmitter, in particular a WIFI, ZigBee or Bluetooth transmitter. Alternatively or additionally, a wired transmitter can also be used, in particular a power line or Ethernet transmitter. The advantage of the former is that no additional data cable has to be laid between the transmitter and receiver, but the transmitted data is directly impressed on the phase voltage.

The display means of the receiver device preferably include light sources, in particular light-emitting diodes. In particularly preferred embodiments, there is one light-emitting diode per phase of the supply voltage. In a particularly concise and easily understandable variant, these can comprise a light-emitting diode each with a color, for example a red, a green, and a blue light-emitting diode, each light-emitting diode being assigned to one phase of a three-phase supply voltage.
The assignment of the diode to the reference phase set by the transmitter can either be fixed, so that, for example, a red diode lighting up means that the phase present at the receiver is the same as that present at the transmitter, a green diode lighting up means that the phase lags by 120° relative to that of the transmitter, and the blue diode lights up to indicate that the receiver phase is 240° lagging or 120° leading.
Alternatively, the assignment can also be freely adjustable by the user. This is particularly useful if part of the electrical installation or part of the supply voltage phases have already been marked with a specific color code. In this case, the receiver display can be adjusted so that the color coding of the phases corresponds to the marking already present.

If the arrangement should also be suitable for measuring and assigning supply voltages with more than three phases, more than three light sources can also be present. Alternatively or additionally, an LCD or TFT display or, in general, a display that enables numbers or symbols to be displayed can also be present. As a result, the time offset and/or the difference angle determined by the comparison means of the receiver can be displayed directly, which allows the user to carry out the phase assignment himself based on knowledge of the phases of the supply voltage.

If the comparison means of the receiver comes to slightly different results with regard to the time offset and/or the difference angle for several predetermined phase angles for the individual phase angles, the arithmetic mean of the slightly different time sets and/or difference phase angles is formed as the result of the measurement. This applies in particular to embodiments of the invention in which the transmitting and receiving device work with binary numerical values of the specific time offsets or difference angles.

In embodiments of the transmitter and/or receiver device, as an alternative or in addition to other transmitter or receiver connection means, they also have the option of directly connecting phase conductors or tapping the voltage of a phase conductor at exposed points using suitable means, for example insulated crocodile clips.

In some embodiments of the invention, the transmission device includes a transmission connection means suitable for connection to several phase conductors, for example a CEE three-phase current plug or several contact conductors with (crocodile) clips, and selection means for selecting one of the connected phases as the reference phase. These selection means can be either a slide switch, a rotary switch, or a knob, with which one of the three connected phases is selected as a reference phase in succession. Feedback as to which of the phases is currently being used as the reference phase can be provided, for example, by a corresponding light source that can be assigned to the connections.

In some embodiments of the invention, in which the transmitter has a connection means suitable for connection to several of the phase conductors, it is also equipped with a display means for displaying a difference angle and/or a time offset of the connected phases relative to a reference phase selected from among them .

In general, the arrangement according to the invention is not limited to a single receiver, but can be combined with a transmitter multiple receivers can also be used. This makes it possible to carry out a phase assignment at more than just one point at the same time, relative to the phase of the transmitter that serves as a reference.

In other embodiments of the invention, the transmitter and receiver are structurally identical units, each of which can assume the function of transmitter or receiver as desired, it being possible to switch from a transmitter to receive mode and vice versa using switching means. This switching means can be in electromechanical form, for example a switch or slide switch. However, these are preferably electronic switching means, such as a button or a capacitive switch. This means that switching can also be triggered by an electrical impulse. For example, as soon as a transceiver unit in receive mode is switched to transmit mode by pressing the button or capacitive switch, a switching signal can be sent to all transceivers in the receiving area, causing them to automatically switch to receive mode. This avoids the reference signals from two or more transmitters colliding with one another at the same time.

The arrangement according to the invention and the method according to the invention are used using the example of the phase assignment of one of the electrical installations in a building in such a way that the transmitter is connected to a phase conductor that is preferably located in a central area of the building, for example by plugging it into a socket or directly connecting it to a or , Depending on the embodiment of the transmitter, several of the phase conductors. The receiver device is then plugged into all sockets in the building one after the other or connected to the supply lines of directly connected consumers or switches and the phase detection according to the invention is carried out. The result is the phase position relative to the reference phase of the transmitter for each measured phase conductor. The phase conductors, i.e. sockets, switches or directly connected loads, can then be marked accordingly.
If the phase of permanently connected consumers, such as lights, heaters or similar, is to be assigned, the receiver can be connected directly to the supply wires. In comparison to the measurement of a socket, the phase assignment is delayed here because the supply wires of the relevant consumer first have to be uncovered, since these are usually protected against contact by insulation in accordance with the regulations.

Further properties, features and advantages of the present invention result from the exemplary embodiments explained in more detail below with reference to the figures. These are only intended to illustrate the invention and not limit it in any way in its generality.

• 1: Eine schematische Ansicht einer bevorzugten Ausführungsforms der erfindungsgemäßen Phasenzuordnungsanordnung, an welcher die zugrundeliegende Idee besonders leicht verständlich wird.
• 2: Eine schematische Ansicht eines Stockwerks eines Gebäudes mit einer Elektroinstallation, welche von einer dreiphasigen externen Speisespannung versorgt wird.
• 3A,B: Vorderansichten zweier bevorzugter Ausführungsformen als Teil der erfindungsgemäßen Anordnung verwendbarer Empfängergeräte.
• 4A,B: Vorderansichten zweier bevorzugter Ausführungsformen von als Teil der erfindungsgemäßen Anordnung verwendbare Empfängergeräte.
• Figure 4C: Vorderansicht eines als Sende- wie auch als Empfängergerät einsetzbaren Senderempfänger gemäß einer weiteren Ausführungsform.
• 5: Darstellung von zeitlichen Verläufen von Referenzspannung, Referenzsignal und Vergleichssignal und sich daraus ergebender Differenzphasenwinkel und Zeitversatz.

Show it:

• 1 1: A schematic view of a preferred embodiment of the phase allocation arrangement according to the invention, in which the underlying idea becomes particularly easy to understand.
• 2 : A schematic view of a floor of a building with an electrical installation powered by a three-phase external supply voltage.
• 3A,B 1: Front views of two preferred embodiments as part of the arrangement of receiver devices usable according to the invention.
• 4A,B 1: Front views of two preferred embodiments of receiver devices usable as part of the arrangement according to the invention.
• FIG. 4C: Front view of a transceiver that can be used both as a transmitter and as a receiver device according to a further embodiment.
• 5 : Representation of the time curves of reference voltage, reference signal and comparison signal and the resulting differential phase angle and time offset.

The 1 Figure 12 shows, in the form of a circuit diagram, a schematic view of an embodiment of the phase allocation arrangement according to the invention. A transmitting device (transmitter) 1.S is connected to a phase L1 and the neutral conductor of a supply network, for example by plugging it into a socket S1 as shown. Of course, the transmission device 1.S could alternatively or additionally also be clamped directly to the wires using appropriate connection means. The transmitting device 1.S then uses internal reference detection means (not shown) to identify reference times at which the voltage of the connected phase L1 serving as a reference reaches one or more specific predetermined phase angles. In this case, there is no need for an explicit measurement or determination of the phase angles, rather it is sufficient to determine points in time that can be assigned to specific phase angles.
For example, the reference detection with tel determine the zero crossings of the reference phase L1 as reference times. The reference times are coded in a reference signal and passed on wirelessly or wired to one or more receivers 1.E, each of which is connected to (any) one of the phases L1 - L3, for example as shown, thereby plugging into other sockets S2, S3, S4 which connected to phase L1, L2 and L3 respectively.

In this embodiment, the transmitter has an LED 13 which flashes to indicate that mains voltage is present. The receiver devices 1.E each have three different-colored LEDs 10, 11, 12 as display means, as well as reference signal reception, comparison detection and comparison means, not shown, with which they receive the reference signal, comparison times at which the phase voltage present in each case corresponds to the specified phase angle reached and be able to compare the comparison times with the reference times. The result of the comparison, a time offset or difference angle, is then displayed using the display means.
If a time offset of about 0 ms is determined at a mains frequency of 50 Hz, LED 11 lights up, which preferably has the same color, for example red, as LED 13 of transmitter 1.S. In the example shown, this will be the case with receiver device 1.Ea, which is connected to the same phase L1 as transmitter device 1.S.
If the detects a time offset of 3.2 ms, which could correspond to phase L2, for example, the middle, for example green, LED 12 lights up. Similarly, if there is a time offset of 6.4 ms, which must then correspond to the third phase L3, the right, for example blue, LED 10.
If the receiver device 1.E is now plugged into all the sockets one after the other, or otherwise connected to the phase conductors to be assigned, their phase assignment can also be determined quickly and easily by a layperson.

In 2 is a schematic plan view of a floor of a building with an electrical installation, in which the arrangement for phase allocation according to the invention is used. In the electrical installation shown schematically, the protective conductors, which usually have to be part of such an installation for safety reasons, have been omitted for better clarity.

The building 100 includes several rooms 110-114 in which various consumers V1-V5, switches S1-S4 and network connection points in the form of sockets D1-D5 are distributed and connected to a house connection point 101 via phase conductors A1-A9 and corresponding neutral conductors N1-N9. In the house connection point 101, the outer conductors A1-A9 and the neutral conductors N1-N9 running in the house 100 are connected to outer conductors L1-L3 brought from outside the building, via which a three-phase supply voltage is supplied, and the external neutral conductor N. Each of the external phase conductors L1 - L3 carries one phase of the three-phase supply voltage, with the phases being offset by 120° from one another. The loads V1-V5, switches S1-S4 and sockets D1-D5 can each be assigned to one of the external phases L1-L3 via the named external conductors A1-A9 and neutral conductor N1-N9. The assignment to the individual phases, unless documented when the electrical installation was set up, can only be reconstructed at a later date using conventional means, since each line leading to the consumers, switches or sockets is traced back and its connection to the house connection point 101 is checked must become.
However, thanks to the inventive arrangement of the transmitter 1.S and receiver 1.E, this can be done much more quickly. As shown in the figure, the transmitter 1.S is plugged into socket D1 in room 114, which is supplied from phase L1 via phase conductor A1. The fact that a mains voltage is actually present at socket D1 is indicated by the signal lamp 13 of transmitter 1.S lighting up. In the simple embodiment of the transmitting device 1.S according to the invention used for this purpose, the applied mains voltage is automatically used as the reference voltage. Based on the specified phase angle, it generates a reference signal from this, which wirelessly transmits to receiver 1E, which is plugged into socket D5 in room 111, for example.
The receiving device 1.E compares the information encoded in the reference signal about the times at which the reference voltage reaches the specified phase angle with the times at which this is the case for the voltage present at socket D5 and shows the result of this comparison over the display means. In the present case, socket D5 is clamped via the outer conductor A9 to the external phase L3, which is 120° ahead of the phase L1 supplying the socket D1 of the transmitter 1.S. Correspondingly, the light 10 lights up on the receiving device 1.E, which indicates a voltage that is leading relative to the reference phase. The lights 10, 11 and 12 of the receiving device 1.E can also have different colors, such as red, green and blue, to make the phases easier to remember.

The assignment of all sockets and consumers or switches to the three phases L1, L2 and L3 is such that the receiving device 1.E successively connected to all sockets, or lines leading to consumers and/or switches, and the phase is determined relative to the reference phase. In this case, the transmitter 1.S can remain plugged into socket D1 the entire time. It would also be possible to connect the transmitting device 1.S to another socket or another switch or consumer which is also supplied by the phase L1 to which the socket D1 is connected. This would not change the reference phase used.

Of course, it would also be possible to select a different phase as the reference phase. However, if this takes place while the phase assignment is being carried out, this would mean that the phase relationship between the old and the new reference phase would have to be taken into account when interpreting the assignment results of the receiving device 1.E. For the sake of simplicity, it is therefore preferred here to use the same phase as the reference phase throughout the assignment.

The result of the phase assignment is List 2, in which the sockets, switches or loads connected to the respective phase L1, L2 or L3 are shown, provided that these are not connected via a switch but directly to a phase, as in the case of load V5 , shown.

The 3A and 3B schematically show a front view of two preferred embodiments of a receiving device 1.E.
The receiving device 1.E according to the 3A has three lights 10, 11 and 12 as display means, which can have the same or different colors. As indicated by the symbols "<", "|" and ">" under the respective lights, the light 10 lights up when the mains voltage present at the contact L of the receiver 1.E corresponds to the reference voltage, which is connected to a with the receiver 1.E is communicated to the cooperating transmitter by means of a reference signal, leading by a specific differential angle, for example 120°. Correspondingly, the light 12 lights up precisely when the phase of the receiving device 1.E lags behind the reference phase, and the light 11 when the phase of the receiving device 1.E is synchronous with the reference phase.

The predetermined phase angles used by the receiving device and the transmitting device can be permanently entered, or there are additional input means on the receiving device and/or on the transmitting device with which the predetermined phase angles can be entered. For example, such means could be present on the transmitting device, which then forwards information about the phase angle used to the receiving device, or to all receiving devices located in the receiving area, when it is switched on for the first time or during a programming process. Alternatively, the information about the phase angle can also be taken from the reference signal, provided that this is supplemented by a signal indicating the beginning of a period of the reference phase, or the reference signal can always change sign at the beginning of a new period, or it can be a sign change at the time of the sign change Square pulse of minimal duration are provided. In this case, the receiving device can easily identify the position of the specified phase angle from the rising and falling edges of the reference signal during a period.

In 3B a further embodiment of a receiving device according to the invention is shown in a schematic front view. Here the display means consist of an LCD display 14, on which the relative phase angle, or alternatively the time offset between the comparison phase present at the receiving device 1.E and the reference phase present at the transmitting device, can be displayed. In the present case, for example, a phase angle ΔΦ of -119°, corresponding to the example from FIG 1 , shown. In general, if the measurement is sufficiently precise, the phase angle will not correspond exactly to the theoretically expected result, here -120°. Nevertheless, even with deviations, as long as they remain within the range of about +-30°, an unambiguous assignment of the phase present at the receiving device 1.E is possible with a high level of confidence.

In the 4A-4C different embodiments of a transmission device according to the invention are shown in a schematic front view.

The transmitter of the 4A includes only a light 13, which indicates the presence of a mains voltage between the contacts L and N, and an internal transmission unit 15 shown in dashed lines for emitting a wireless reference signal

In 4B a transmitting device 1.S is shown, which is suitable for connection to several phases, here specifically three phases corresponding to the three input contacts L1-L3. In this way, the reference phase can be selected before or during the implementation of the phase assignment. For this purpose, the transmitter has a button B2, with which the phase used can be switched. The desired color of the individual phases can be selected with button B1. With three phases, there are 6 options between which you can switch through by repeatedly pressing button B1. The respective color assignment is made using of the three-color lights 13', which are assigned to the individual phase contacts L1, L2 and L3.

The display panel 16 comprises two rows of three lights each, which are each associated with one of the three input contacts L1-L3. As a result, the phase relationship of the phases connected to the contacts L1 - L3 can already be recognized on the transmitter 1.S.

If, for example, the phase applied to contact L1 is selected as the reference and the voltage of phase L2 lags behind phase L1 by 120°, the middle lamp of the upper row in display panel 16 lights up. In this example, the voltage applied to L3 is then corresponding lagging behind by 120°, which is why the right-hand light in the lower row lights up. The left-hand lamp in both rows also lights up, indicating that phase L1 is selected as the reference phase. Alternatively, this can also be indicated by the fact that the three-color lamp 13' associated with the reference phase lights up brighter than the three-color lamps associated with the other two phases.

4C shows a preferred embodiment of a combined transmitting and receiving device used in the arrangement according to the invention. This is similar in structure to the transmitter device 3B , however, the in 3C shown transceiver 1.SE also has a button B3, with which you can switch back and forth between a transmission and a reception mode. This change is preferably communicated to all other transmitting and receiving devices located in the receiving area by a corresponding signal, so that they automatically switch to the corresponding receiving mode. The currently active mode is indicated by the lights 17.1 and 17.2.

In 5 is an example of the time profile of a reference voltage, which uses two phase angles, here Φ1 = 90° and Φ2 = 180°, generated by the transmitter device to determine the reference times T ₁₁ , T ₁₂ , T ₂₁ , T ₂₂ , T ₃₁ (etc.) coding reference signal S _ref , as well as the reference times T ₁₁ , T ₁₂ , T ₂₁ , T ₂₂ , T ₃₁ from the reference signal S _ref with the comparison times t ₁₁ , t ₁₂ , t ₂₁ recognized from the voltage applied to the receiver device in the receiver device , t ₂₂ , determined phase difference angle Δφ or time offset Δt shown.

The sinusoidal reference phase voltage U _ref reaches the predetermined phase angles Φ ₁ , Φ ₂ in the first period at the reference times T ₁₁ , T ₁₂ in the second period T ₂₁ , T ₂₂ etc. The reference signal S _ref is generated on the basis of these reference times recognized by the transmitting device, which has the same frequency as the reference voltage U _ref and comprises square-wave pulses, the rising edge of which represents the first reference time in each period T ₁₁ , T ₂₁ , T _{31 ,} etc., and the falling edge of which represents the second reference time in each period T ₂₁ , T ₂₂ , etc . In order to enable the receiver device to synchronize with the transmitter device when determining the comparison times, the reference signal S _ref also includes at the beginning of each period a negative square-wave pulse PA that is short compared to the period duration T and lasts approximately between T/1000 and T/50.
From the comparison of the reference times with the comparison times t ₁₁ , t ₁₂ , t ₂₁ , t ₂₂ etc. recognized by the receiver device, two difference angles ΔΦ ₁ , ΔΦ ₂ and/or time offsets Δt ₁ , Δt ₂ are determined for each period. The arithmetic mean is formed as the overall comparison result, which then serves as the basis for the information displayed with the aid of the display means.

Reference List

1.E

receiving device

1st p

transmitter

1st SE

combined transceiver

2

assignment result

100

Building

101

house connection point

110-114

Room

L1-L3

Phases of the external supply voltage

N

external neutral conductor

A1-A9

in-house external conductors

N1-N9

in-house neutral conductor

D1-D5

sockets

S1-S4

Switch

V1-V5

consumer

10-13

indicator lights

13'

Three color indicator light

14

LCD display

15

wireless transmitter

16

display panel

17.1, 17.2

Operating mode indicator lights

B1-B3

button

T11 - T31

reference times

t11-t22

comparison times

ϕ1, ϕ2

predetermined phase angle

Δt1, Δt2, Δt

time offset

Δϕ1, ΔΦ2, Δϕ

differential angle

QUOTES INCLUDED IN DESCRIPTION

This list of documents cited by the applicant was generated automatically and is included solely for the better information of the reader. The list is not part of the German patent or utility model application. The DPMA assumes no liability for any errors or omissions.

Patent Literature Cited

• US 9568522 B2 [0005, 0027]
• DE 19621543 A1 [0006, 0027]
• DE 102011087280 A1 [0007, 0018, 0024, 0027]

Claims (14)

Arrangement for phase allocation, i.e. for allocation of one or more outer or phase conductors (A1 - 9) of an electrical installation to one of the phases (L1 - 3) of a multi-phase supply voltage supplied to the electrical installation, comprising - a transmitter (1.S, 1.SE ) with ◯ transmitter connection means for connection to at least one of the outer conductors and a neutral conductor (N1 - 9) of the electrical installation, with the phase of one of the connected outer conductors being used as the reference phase, and ◯ reference detection means for detecting reference times (T ₁₁ , T ₁₂ , T ₂₁ , T ₂₂ , T ₃₁ ) at which the voltage of the reference phase reaches one or more predetermined phase angles (ϕ ₁ , ϕ ₂ ) relative to the rising zero crossing, and ◯ reference signal generation means for generating a reference signal (S _ref ) which indicates the identified reference instants (T ₁₁ , T ₁₂ , T ₂₁ , T ₂₂ , T ₃₁ ) encoded, and ◯ reference signal transmission means (15) for transmitting the reference signal s (S _ref ) to - at least one receiver device (1.E, 1.SE), with ◯ receiver connection means, for connecting the receiver device (1.E, 1.SE) to a receiver phase conductor carrying a receiver phase under the outer conductors and a neutral conductor ( N1 - 9) of the electrical installation, and ◯ reference signal receiving means for receiving the reference signal (1.E, 1.SE), and ◯ phase comparison detection means for detecting comparison times (t ₁₁ , t ₁₂ , t ₂₁ , t ₂₂ ), at which the voltage of the receiver phase reaches the specified phase angle(s) (ϕ1, ϕ ₂ ) relative to the rising zero crossing of the receiver phase, ◯ comparison means for determining a time offset and/or a difference angle between the reference times (T ₁₁ , T ₁₂ ) taken from the reference signal (S _ref ). , T ₂₁ , T ₂₂ , T ₃₁ ) and the recognized comparison times (t ₁₁ , t ₁₂ , t ₂₁ , t ₂₂ ), and ◯ display means (11, 12, 13, 16) for displaying the time offset (Δt) and/ or the differential win kel (Δϕ) at least in a simplified manner, whereby an assignment of the receiver phase conductor to one of the phases (L1-3) of the supply voltage is possible. arrangement according to claim 1 , characterized in that the reference signal (S _ref ) is an analogue or digitized square-wave signal with a frequency which corresponds to a mains frequency of the supply voltage, edges of the square-wave signal corresponding to the identified reference times, in particular a first rising edge corresponding to the point in time at which the voltage of the reference phase reaches the smallest of the predetermined phase angles, and furthermore in particular a first falling edge at a point in time at which the voltage of the reference phase reaches a second smallest of the predetermined phase angles (φ1, φ ₂ ) or corresponds to the end of the period. arrangement according to claim 2 , characterized in that the reference signal for synchronizing the comparison detection means of the receiver device (1.E, 1.SE) with the reference detection means of the transmitter device (1.S, 1.SE) has a feature (PA ) includes, in particular, a short square-wave pulse (PA) or a change of sign. Arrangement according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the predetermined phase angle (ϕ ₁ , ϕ ₂ ) is - 0°, 180° or 0° and 180° corresponding to the first, the second or both zero crossings of the voltage of the reference phase, or - 90 °, 270° or 90° and 270° corresponding to one or both of the extreme values of the reference phase voltage, or - 0°, 90°, 180° and 270° corresponding to the zero crossings and the extreme values of the reference phase voltage. Arrangement according to the preceding claim, characterized in that the transmitting device (1.S, 1.SE) uses the reference detection means to determine the instants of the zero crossings of the reference phase voltage as reference instants and the reference signal encodes these instants in particular in that it is a square-wave signal whose Flanks coincide in time with the reference times or has a voltage pulse that is short in comparison to the period of the supply voltage at the reference times. Arrangement according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the reference detection means of the transmitter device (1.S, 1.SE) and/or the phase comparison detection means of the receiver device (1.E, 1.SE) - a potential-separated image of the phase voltage of the respectively connected phase conductor obtained, and/or have time measuring means with a measuring accuracy of between 0.01 and 1.0 ms, preferably 0.05 and 0.1 ms. Arrangement according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the transmitter connection means have a plug, in particular a CEE 7/4, 7/5, 7/7, 7/16 or a three-phase CEE power plugs, and/or the receiver connection means include a plug, in particular a CEE 7/4, 7/5, 7/7, or 7/16 plug. Arrangement according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the reference signal transmission means (15) of the transmitter (1.S, 1.SE) a wireless transmitter, in particular a WiFi, ZigBee or Bluetooth transmitter, and / or a wired transmitter, in particular a Powerline or Ethernet transmitter include, and the reference signal receiving means of the receiver device (1.E, 1.SE), is a corresponding receiver. Arrangement according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the display means of the receiver device (1.E, 1.SE) light sources, in particular light-emitting diodes (10, 11, 12), in particular one light-emitting diode per phase (L1, L2, L3) of the supply voltage , particularly preferably three light-emitting diodes of different colors, and/or a display (14) for displaying symbols, in particular an LCD or TFT display. Arrangement according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the transmitting device (1.S, 1.SE) comprises a transmission connection means suitable for connection to several of the phase conductors (A1 - A9) and selection means for selecting one of the connected phases as the reference phase, and additionally in particular via display means for displaying a difference angle and/or a time offset of the connected phases relative to a reference phase, wherein the reference phase can be selected from one of the connected phases in particular by means of selection means of the transmitter. Arrangement according to one of the preceding claims, characterized by more than one receiver device (1.E, 1.SE). Arrangement according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the receiver device and transmitter device are structurally identical transceiver devices (1.SE) and comprise switching means (B3) by means of which the transceiver devices (1.SE) can each be switched between a transmit mode and a receive mode, with in particular the switching of one of the transceivers located in the reception mode to the transmission mode causes the other transceivers (1.SE) located in a reception area to switch automatically to the reception mode. Method for phase assignment of the phase conductors (A1 - A9) of an electrical installation to one of the phases (L1 - L3) of a multi-phase supply voltage by means of an arrangement (1) according to one of the preceding claims, comprising the steps of a) connecting the transmitting device (1.S, 1.SE) with at least one of the phase conductors (A1 - A9) of the electrical installation, with a phase carried by one of these phase conductors being selected as the reference phase, in particular with the aid of selection means of the transmitter device, b) connecting the receiver device (1.E, 1 .SE) with one of the phase conductors of the electrical installation and a neutral conductor (N1 - N9), c) Detection of reference times (T ₁₁ , T ₁₂ , T ₂₁ , T ₂₂ , T ₃₁ ) at which the voltage of the reference phase has one or more predetermined Phase angle (φ1, φ ₂ ) relative to the rising zero crossing of the reference phase achieved by means of the reference detection means of the transmitting device (1.S, 1.SE), d) generation of a reference signal which the detected n reference times (T ₁₁ , T ₁₂ , T ₂₁ , T ₂₂ , T ₃₁ ) encoded by means of the reference signal generating means of the transmitting device (1.S, 1.SE), e) transmission of the reference signal to the receiver by means of the reference signal transmission means, f) reception of the Reference signal of the transmitting device (1.S, 1.SE) by means of the reference signal receiving means of the receiving device, g) detection of comparison times (t ₁₁ , t ₁₂ , t ₂₁ , t ₂₂ ) at which the voltage of the receiver phase exceeds the predetermined phase angle(s) (ϕ1 , ϕ ₂ ) relative to the rising zero crossing achieved by means of the phase comparison detection means of the receiver device (1.E, 1.SE), h) determination of a time offset and/or a difference angle between the reference times (T ₁₁ , T ₁₂ , T ₂₁ , T ₂₂ , T ₃₁ ) and recognized comparison times (t ₁₁ , t ₁₂ , t ₂₁ , t ₂₂ ) by means of the comparison means of the receiver device (1.E, 1.SE), and i) displaying a time offset (Δt) and/or the difference angle (Δϕ) at least in a simplified manner, whereby the receiver phase conductor can be assigned to one of the phases (L1-L3) of the supply voltage. Method according to the preceding claim, characterized in that the receiver device (1.E, 1.SE) is connected to other unassigned phase conductors (A1 - A9) of the electrical installation and for each of these other phase conductors (A1- A9) steps c - j be carried out.

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